Philotheca eremicola | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Sapindales |
Family: | Rutaceae |
Genus: | Philotheca |
Species: | P. eremicola
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Binomial name | |
Philotheca eremicola |
Philotheca eremicola is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a small shrub similar to Philotheca coateana but has smaller leaves and different sepals.
Philotheca eremicola is a shrub that grows to a height of about 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) and has glabrous branchlets. The leaves are crowded near the ends of the branchlets, about 2.5 mm (0.098 in) long, glossy green and glandular-warty. The flowers are borne singly on the ends of the branchlets on slender pedicels about 4 mm (0.16 in) long. There are five egg-shaped to narrow triangular sepals about 3 mm (0.12 in) long with prominent brown glands and five elliptical, white petals with a pink midline and 7–9 mm (0.28–0.35 in) long. The ten stamens are free from each other and hairy.[2][3][4][5]
Philotheca eremicola was first formally described in 1998 by Paul Wilson in the journal Nuytsia from specimens collected by D.J. Pearson near the Tjirrkarli Community in the Gibson Desert.[4][6]
This species of philotheca is only known from the type location in the Gibson Desert.[3][5]
This species is classified as "Priority One" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife,[5] meaning that it is known from only one or a few locations which are potentially at risk.[7]